NRSG203 to NRSG225

NRSG203 Images of Nursing                                                                                                  10 cp

Prerequisites Nil (Elective)

Teaching Organisation Equivalent of 36 hours of classroom contact per semester.

Selected works of prose, poetry, visual art, drama and music are used to explore a range of human concerns and life experiences. Through observation, reflection and shared understandings students are encouraged to search for meanings of themselves and others in the context of human caring and healing.

NRSG204 Nursing 3                                                                                                                10 cp

Prerequisites Nil

Teaching Organisation Equivalent of 30 hours of lectures, 10 hours of tutorials, and 20 hours of Nursing Laboratory per semester.

The unit builds upon the foundation established in Semesters 1 and 2. It focuses on the health of individuals experiencing alterations to the cognitive-perceptual and nutritional-metabolic functional health patterns. Emphasis is placed on theories of psychiatric and mental health nursing, acute care and disability. Students will have the opportunity to extend their understanding of abnormal psychology and will be introduced to classification systems of disability and mental status. In addition, opportunity will be provided for students to reflect on the influence of disability on the health status of individuals and communities and the delivery of health services.

NRSG205 Nursing 4                                                                                                                10 cp

Prerequisites Nil

Teaching Organisation Equivalent of 30 hours of lectures, 10 hours of tutorials, and 20 hours of Nursing Laboratory per semester.

The unit builds upon the foundation established in Semesters 1, 2 and 3. Specific functional health patterns, activity – exercise, self-perception - self-concept and coping – stress tolerance, are used to explore meanings of particular health alterations to individuals, groups and communities. Emphasis is placed on the integration of selected theories and principles of nursing practice and related concepts of pathophysiology. Students will have the opportunity to reflect on the influence of environment on functional roles of practitioners in various clinical settings.

NRSG207 Clinical Nursing Practice                                                                                       10 cp

Prerequisites Nil

Teaching Organisation Equivalent of 36 hours of classroom contact per semester. Includes Nursing Laboratory practice.

The aim of the unit is to provide students with the opportunity to extend their clinical experience in an area of interest. This clinical experience will be underpinned by the necessary theoretical content. This unit would develop specific clinical skills related to future employment possibilities, overseas nursing registration, or speciality nursing practice.

NRSG212 Substance Abuse (Drug and Alcohol)                                                                     10 cp

Prerequisites Nil (Elective)

Teaching Organisation Equivalent of 36 hours of classroom contact per semester.

This unit focuses on the nursing management of individuals who abuse alcohol and other drugs within a drug-oriented society. Students will have the opportunity to gain an understanding of current approaches to the assessment and management of substance abuse within a social framework. In addition, the course is directed towards helping students gain a greater appreciation of available resources in the alcohol and other drug treatment field.

NRSG213 Introduction to Palliative Care                                                                               10 cp

Prerequisites Nil (Elective)

Teaching Organisation Equivalent of 36 hours of classroom contact per semester.

The transition from curative to palliative approaches to treatment and care is often a protracted and difficult time for all concerned. The difficulties are compounded when the terminally ill client remains in an environment, such as an acute care hospital, where the staff may feel ill prepared to deal with the special needs of these clients. The palliative care phase of the client’s life is marked by progressive physical and emotional changes and often a renewed spiritual awareness. These changes all require diligent nursing care and support to accompany the client towards a dignified and comfortable death. This unit will introduce students to palliative care practices that will better equip them to support clients and their families who are dealing with incurable illness.

NRSG214 Clinical Practice 4                                                                                                  10 cp

Prerequisites Nil

Teaching Organisation Equivalent of 120 hours of off campus Clinical Practice per semester.

This unit contributes to the integration of theoretical and clinical concepts and their application in a health care environment. Clinical practice will be undertaken in settings where students are able to apply theoretical and practical knowledge relevant to the functional health patterns studied in Nursing 4.

NRSG215 Introduction to Nursing Research                                                                           10 cp

Prerequisites Nil

Teaching Organisation Equivalent of 20 hours of lectures and 18 hours of tutorials per semester.

Given that research is critical to the development and relevance of nursing as a practice discipline, this unit is designed to assist students to understand ways of knowing in nursing and approaches to knowledge development in the discipline.

NRSG216 With Woman: Rethinking Pain                                                                               10 cp

Prerequisites Nil

Teaching Organisation Fully online. Equivalent 40 of hours of contact 120 hours of independent study per semester.

The focus of this unit is the concept of pain and the role of the midwife in assisting women experiencing pain. Pain will be explored from the philosophical, physiological, spiritual and psychosocial perspective. Emphasis will be placed upon contemporary research evidence to determine appropriate pain strategies to employ, in partnership with women experiencing pain, in its various expressions, including loss and grief. Midwifery students will be assisted to explore to explore preparation for birthing and the impact of the environment upon women’s ability to cope with pain, during and after birth. This unit informs the practice unit Practice Allegiances.

NRSG217 Unpacking Midwifery Knowledge                                                                          10 cp

Prerequisites Nil

Teaching Organisation Fully online. Equivalent of 40 hours of contact 120 hours of independent study per semester.

This introduces students to the historical development of midwifery knowledge and the influence of different philosophies in shaping contemporary midwifery knowledge. Ways of knowing and being “with woman” and the need for evidence-informed practice are explored. Unit participants are encouraged to reflect on and critique different approaches to the development and substantiation of general and midwifery knowledge. Emphasis is given to the critique of published articles that reflect contemporary notions of midwifery knowledge and theory and inform and reinforce the interdependence of theory and practice. This unit is linked to the core research unit.

NRSG218 Practice Allegiances                                                                                              10 cp

Prerequisites Nil

Co requisite NRSG216 With Woman Rethinking Pain

Teaching Organisation 20 hours of practical laboratory, 160 hours of midwifery practice per semester.

This unit provides the opportunity for students to immerse themselves in midwifery practice in relation to women and their experiences of pain in all its various expressions, including grief and loss. Students will be given the opportunity to apply theoretical concepts, in relation to pain experienced during birth, to the practice setting. The focus will be on assisting the midwifery student to develop high level assessment skills to enable them to support women in making choices about the most appropriate strategy to employ to work with pain in birthing. Non pharmacological methods of pain relief, such as positioning, massage, aromatherapy and visualization will be explored, as will pharmacological approaches such as narcotic analgesia and epidural anaesthetic. Other expressions of pain related to intra-uterine death and stillbirth will be examined and approaches to supporting and assisting parents will be discussed.

NRSG219 Women's Health: Sociopolitical Context                                                                10 cp

Prerequisites Nil

Teaching Organisation Fully online. Equivalent of 40 hours of contact 120 hrs of independent study per semester.

This unit will provide students with an opportunity to debate sociopolitical aspects of women’s health through the lifespan, in the context of the Australian health care system. Women’s sexual and reproductive health will be considered in the terms of the nature of women’s lives, socioeconomic and cultural differences and the provision of health services. The focus of this exploration will be on the paradoxical relationship between gender and health and the use of health services, as well as an examination of women’s experiences as the recipients of health care, particularly in the context of socioeconomic and cultural difference. The politics of women’s health in relation to poverty, social class, ethnicity, body image, sexual orientation, rape, incest, pornography, violence, genital mutilation and fertility treatments will be considered. Conceptual frameworks for practice that address the complexity of women’s health and reflect contemporary views of midwifery practice will be debated.

. NRSG221 Towards a Midwife Self                                                                                       10 cp

Prerequisites Nil

Co-requisite Midwives Working with Diversity

Teaching Organisation 20 hours of practical laboratory, 160 hours of midwifery practice per semester.

This practice unit will assist students to build on skills obtained in previous semesters in working with a variety of women experiencing childbearing, in a variety of settings. In particular this unit will assist students to immerse themselves in the midwifery context and culture in order to develop a critique of self in practice. Students will be encouraged to develop a sense of self as a beginning midwife, with an understanding of their actions, attitudes, beliefs and values, and how these form a dialectical relationship with action in practice. To assist understanding of the sense of self as a midwife, students will be expected to engage with a minimum of ten women in order to ‘follow through’ to six weeks after their baby is born. Students will take responsibility (under guidance) for working as ‘named’ midwife with a minimum of ten women.

NRSG222 Legal Issues in Health Care                                                                                   10 cp

Prerequisites Nil (Elective)

Teaching Organisation Equivalent of 36 hours of classroom contact per semester; may include field visit.

Health care practice occurs within increasingly diverse and complex environments with the law and professional processes seeking to ensure the quality of such practice. These legal and professional processes are based on a belief in the inherent dignity and worth of every person and the desire for the common good, which is a particular focus of this unit. Furthermore, the topics explored in this unit are underpinned by a concern for all people, especially those considered less fortunate and those vulnerable to exploitation. For health care practitioners, an increased awareness and knowledge of the legal and professional systems provides protection for those in their care, and promotes a spirit of justice while facilitating expansion of the health care practitioner’s role.

NRSG223 Spirituality for Nurses: Caring for the Whole Person                                             10 cp

Prerequisites Nil (Elective)

Teaching Organisation Equivalent of 36 hours of classroom contact per semester.

This unit is divided into two sections. The first section investigates various concepts of spirituality that may best serve the needs of nurses working in the area of health and age care ministry. The concepts of spirituality will be drawn from a variety of multicultural sources, from Eastern and Western religious traditions, from Indigenous spiritual worldviews, and from secular perspectives. Using a constructionist approach to learning, students will articulate a holistic and functional definition of spirituality that embodies their personal vision of life’s meaning and purpose in the light of their own life experiences and self-reflections. As part of this formation process, various moral and ethical issues that arise in nursing practice such as pain and suffering will be addressed. The use of such material as art, literature, film, and contemporary writings will be used to stimulate discussion and shape student’s thinking. The second section of the unit explores the practical side of spirituality and spiritual care deals with issues as attention, self-awareness, creative use of the imagination, centring and simple meditative and prayerful techniques.

NRSG224 Nursing Practice for Specialty Care                                                                       10 cp

Prerequisites Nil (Elective)

Teaching Organisation Equivalent of 36 hours of classroom contact per semester.

This unit provides students with further opportunity to extend and deepen their theoretical and practical knowledge and understanding of clinically relevant nursing discovery, deliberations, strategies and praxis in a selected specialty area of practice. Students may elect to study in one of the following areas: aged care, palliative care, acute care, critical care, maternity nursing, women’s health, or child and family health and may include nursing theory and practice in hospitals, clinics, community and home contexts.

NRSG225 Academic Preparation for Nursing Studies                                                            10 cp

Prerequisites Nil

Teaching Organisation Equivalent of 36 hours of classroom contact per semester.

The focus of this unit is to prepare students to successfully pursue their academic nursing studies, using effective English Language communication skills. Within this unit, opportunities will be provided for students to develop and extend specific academic skills related to the Bachelor of Nursing Program. Using a Lifelong learning approach, the emphasis of the unit will be on developing students’ self-directedness as well as their generic transferable skills. These academic skills, will act as a foundation for subsequent nursing academic studies, and encourage students to participate effectively in their future professional careers. Particular attention will be given to oral interaction, writing for academic purposes, report writing and reflective practice. Throughout this unit, students will be given the opportunity to develop their skills in time and resource management, as well as information and computer literacy. Students will also be introduced to critical thinking skills and working in groups.